1. Field of the Invention
The rate at which bodily liquids are released into the atmosphere increases with ambient temperature, humidity, wind velocity, wearing apparel, and physical exersion. While exercising vigorously, an athlete loses an average of one liter of bodily liquid per hour which can lead to dehydration if not replaced by ingested liquid. It is preferred that liquids be ingested at substantially the same rate at which they are dissipated in order to ensure good health, maximize physical performance and to avoid the dangers of heat prostration.
While bicyclists, long distance runners, hikers, and other athletes require continuous replacement of bodily liquids, this is difficult to achieve because of the complexities involved in simultaneously drinking from a container while performing the athletic functions such as pedaling a bicycle or maintaining timing, rhythm and balance.
When performing certain outdoor activities such as bicycling or hiking, it is desirable to carry items such as sunscreen, an emergency medical kit, a jacket, identification, and tools as well as liquids. Depending on the duration and type of activity, the need for equipment varies. At certain times it may be that only liquids are desired. It would be desirable for a liquid dispensing system to be compact and streamline when carrying only liquids yet have the ability to expand to carry numerous miscellaneous items as needed.
Some items to be carried may be valuable; others such as lip balm are small and difficult to find if not placed in a small identifiable pocket, while others such as a jacket are bulky. It would be advantageous for a liquid dispensing system to have small pockets to store certain items and at least one large pocket for larger items and yet this usually leads to a bulky and cluttered arragement. It would also be advantageous for secure storage of valuable items. Small pockets incorporated within a large pocket, would accomplish these advantages by providing space for small and large items in a neat, compact arrangement, while incorporating multiple closures for security.
2. Prior Art
Existing liquid dispensing systems that use a collapsible container for holding liquid are constructed such that the collapsible container is independent of the insulating pouch which is independent of a storage pouch that incorporates pockets for storage. These systems are bulky, cumbersome, and expensive because they are, in essence, comprised of a bag within a bag within a bag. In order to fill the bladder with liquid, one must open the outer bag or bags and remove the bladder. The full bladder must then be pushed into the insulating pouch, a difficult and cumbersome task, especially if an additional outer storage bag is full of extraneous but necessary items. It would be advantageous to have an integrated liquid dispensing and storage system such that it is one complete unit having an externally accessible fill port.
The weight of the liquid dispensing and storage system is of primary importance. Existing liquid dispensing systems utilizing multi-bag construction are relatively heavy. It would be advantageous to have a liquid dispensing and storage system that is integrated such that it is one complete unit reducing construction material usage for weight reduction while maintaining the benefits of insulation and storage.
Because the construction of existing liquid dispensing systems with storage capabilities requires that the internal bladder be removed from the outer bag or bags for filling, the flexible tubing that connects the bladder to the mouthpiece must be separable from the outer bag or bags and cannot be semipermanently affixed to the shoulder straps. This causes inconvenience when donning the system because the unaffixed flexible tubing becomes entangled with the shoulder straps or hangs behind the user, making it difficult to reach behind the back to retrieve the flexible tubing. It would be advantageous to have a liquid dispensing system with storage with flexible tubing that can be semipermanently affixed to the shoulder straps, and which can remain affixed when filling the collapsible container and when donning the system.
The orienting holders on existing liquid dispensing systems with storage capabilities are either fixed in place on the shoulder strap, making them unadjustable, or utilize a clip which requires the use of both hands in order to fix in place or adjust such systems. It would be desirable for a liquid dispensing system to have orienting holders which are easily adjustable to different positions along the shoulder strap utilizing only one hand.
Existing liquid dispensing systems that use a collapsible container for holding the liquid, incorporate fill ports which are smooth on the inner wall allowing no space between the inner wall of the fill port and the opposite flexible inner wall when the collapsible container is empty. This lack of space makes filling the container with liquid difficult because while holding the fill port under the flow of liquid, the collapsible container naturally folds due to gravity which effectively closes the fill port. It would be desirable for the fill port on a liquid dispensing system to have multiple support legs on the inner surface holding the opposite flexible inner wall of the collapsible container slightly distant from the fill port so that liquid can naturally flow into the container during the filling operation.
Existing liquid dispensing systems retain body heat in the area of the back abutting the container because existing materials, used to insulate the liquid within the collapsible container, prevent body heat from dissipating freely in the area of contact. It would be desirable to have a panel with embossed channels which insulate the liquid within the collapsible container while allowing air to vent between the insulating panel and the user's back.
Athletes must ingest liquids while breathing rapidly and deeply. It would be advantageous to be able to frequently swallow small amounts of liquid intermittently between breaths, allowing maximum liquid intake without sacrificing oxygen intake. It would be desirable to have an orally activated valve device that can be easily held in the teeth without activating the valve in order to be able to breathe heavily between instances of liquid ingestion without liquid dripping from the valve. This would allow repetitive liquid intake and breathing without unwanted liquid flow interfering with breathing.
When the mouth is in a sucking configuration, the tongue naturally thrusts forward to prevent the object from entering too far into the mouth. It would be desirable for a drinking device to have an orally activated valve that utilizes the natural thrusting of the tongue to depress an activating member on the front of the device.
Individuals will have different preferences for oral activation of a drinking device depending on physical position, situation or personal biases. For example, the body of a cyclist on a road bike is oriented horizontally with the face angled vertically, while the body and face of a mountain biker or hiker are both vertical, and the body of a snow skier is vertical with the face angled horizontally. Different head to body positions change the angle of the valve device in the mouth, assuming the flexible tubing is of a fixed length. It would be desirable to have an orally activated valve on a liquid dispensing system which allows activation with various techniques utilizing the tongue and/or teeth to accommodate differing physical positions, situations and preferences.
A valve device which easily dislodges from the flexible tubing could be ingested into the lungs or passageways associated with the lungs of hyperventilating athletes such as runners or cyclists. A unitary resilient valve device as described in the prior art, for example, easily dislodges from the flexible tubing because the material used cannot be both soft and resilient enough to function as a bite valve, yet be stiff enough to resist accidental dislodgment. It would be desirable for a valve device for oral use to be securely connected to the flexible tubing in order to avoid the possibility of the valve device being ingested by the user.
The following patents are deemed to be relvant to the present invention to varying degrees but without precluding the patentability thereof:
U.S. Pat. No. 3,822,720 Souza PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 4,090,650 Gotta PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 4,095,812 Rowe PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 4,629,098 Eger PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 4,739,905 Nelson PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 4,776,495 Vignot PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 4,852,781 Shurnick et al PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 4,941,598 Lainbelet, Jr. et al PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 4,948,023 Tripp PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 5,060,833 Edison et al PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 5,085,349 Fawcett